Contrasting SCI Engineered Materials (OTCMKTS:SCIA) and Coda Octopus Group (NASDAQ:CODA)

Coda Octopus Group (NASDAQ:CODA) and SCI Engineered Materials (OTCMKTS:SCIA) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, dividends, institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Coda Octopus Group and SCI Engineered Materials’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Coda Octopus Group	14.09%	6.26%	5.79%
SCI Engineered Materials	9.13%	11.23%	9.05%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Coda Octopus Group and SCI Engineered Materials, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Coda Octopus Group	0	0	1	0	3.00
SCI Engineered Materials	0	0	0	0	0.00

Coda Octopus Group presently has a consensus price target of $11.00, indicating a potential upside of 36.31%. Given Coda Octopus Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Coda Octopus Group is more favorable than SCI Engineered Materials.

Volatility & Risk

Coda Octopus Group has a beta of 0.6, suggesting that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SCI Engineered Materials has a beta of 0.76, suggesting that its stock price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

20.1% of Coda Octopus Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 27.6% of SCI Engineered Materials shares are owned by institutional investors. 21.8% of Coda Octopus Group shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 19.7% of SCI Engineered Materials shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Coda Octopus Group and SCI Engineered Materials”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Coda Octopus Group	$20.32 million	4.47	$3.65 million	$0.30	26.90
SCI Engineered Materials	$22.87 million	0.83	$1.86 million	$0.32	12.91

Coda Octopus Group has higher earnings, but lower revenue than SCI Engineered Materials. SCI Engineered Materials is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Coda Octopus Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Coda Octopus Group beats SCI Engineered Materials on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Coda Octopus Group

Coda Octopus Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, develops, sells, and rentals underwater technologies and equipment for real time 3D imaging, mapping, defense, and survey applications in the Americas, Europe, Australia, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. The company operates through two segments, Marine Engineering Business and Marine Technology Business. The company's solutions include geophysical systems; GNSS-aided navigation systems (attitude and positioning systems); real time volumetric imaging sonar products; and diver augmented vision display systems. It also offers GeoSurvey, a software and hardware package for acquisition and processing of sidescan sonar and sub-bottom profiler data in oil and gas companies; DA4G, a geophysical hardware; and Survey Engine, a software product that provides post-processing solutions for sidescan sonar and sub-bottom profiler data. In addition, the company offers 3D/4D/5D/6D imaging sonar technology under the Echoscope and Echoscope PIPE name; diving technology under the CodaOctopus DAVD; and operates as a sub-contractor for defense contractors, as well as supplies sub-assemblies for broader mission critical defense systems. It markets and sells its technology solutions for the subsea and underwater markets. Coda Octopus Group, Inc. was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Orlando, Florida.

About SCI Engineered Materials

SCI Engineered Materials, Inc. engages in the manufacture and supply of materials for physical vapor deposition thin film applications in the United States. It offers ceramic targets, metal sputtering targets, and backing plates for use in semiconductors, thin film solar, flat panel displays, defense, aerospace, and photonics industries. The company’s materials are used to produce nano layers of metals and oxides for advanced material systems; and in applying decorative coatings for end uses, such as sink faucets to produce various electronic, photonic, and semiconductor products. It serves domestic and multi-national corporations, universities, and research institutions. The company was formerly known as Superconductive Components, Inc. and changed its name to SCI Engineered Materials, Inc. in 2007. SCI Engineered Materials, Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.